Half to howard h



(No Model.)

A.. T. BROWN.

PIRE ESCAPE.

N. PETER$. P1mo-Lithgnpmr, washington. nu

,States 'ATENT OFFICE.

. A ALEXANDER T. BROWN, OF SYRAGUSE, NEW YQRK, ASSIGNOR OF ONF- nALF ToHoWARn n. LINCOLN, on sittin PLAGE.

FIRE-ESCAPE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent' No. 272,642, datedFebruary 20, 1883.

- Application tiled August 22, 1882. (No model.)

To all whom t may concern Be it known that I, ALEXANDER T. BROWN, ot thecity of Syracuse, in the county of Onondaga and State of .New York, haveinvented certain new and usel'ul improvements in Fire- Escapes; and l dohereby declare that the following` is a full, clear, and exactdescription thereof, which will enable others skilled in the art towhich it appertains to rnake and use the same, reference being had tothe accompanying drawings, and to' the letters of reference markedthereon, which form a part of this specification.

The object of my invention is to provide a safe and e'ective means ofescape to persons in the upper stories of burning buildings; and itconsists in the construction and arrangement of parts hereinafterntorefully set forth in the specification and pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure l is a plan elevation of my invention. Fig. 2 isa sectional perspective.

It consists of a reel, A, cable B, pawl C, coilspring D, upper and lowerreel-frames, E E', and safety-dog F, with such attachments andconnections as are hereinafter mentioned.

One ot' the flanges of the reel is provided with outer and innerratchet-teeth@ (tand a a. The drum ot' the reel is constructed Withlateral concavities about its axle to afford ample room on either sidefor the pend ulutn, returnspring, and safety-dog, hereinafter described.

The pawl Gis provided with a pendulum, c, of suitable Weigh t, rnilysecured at otle end, und oscillatesupon an axis, d, by which it iscentrally secured to the upper reel-frame, E.

When desired to be used theo-able is secured to hook X, as shown in Fig.1, and a suitable strap or harness, attached to the ring G, is securedtothe body of the person to be lowered. His Weight revolves the Wheel,n'hiclrpa-ys out the cable, causing` a descent, which is mod ulated bythe action of the pawl C upon the ratchet-teeth a. ft.

An important feature oi' my invention consists in the means ofautomatically returning the device after each descent. This isaccomplished by means ot' the coiled spring D and the peculiar mode ofconstructing and connecting the central joint of the frames E E. Thejoint ends of the upper frame have each a circular aperture much largerthan the axle d', Which passes through them. The joint ends ot' frame Eare provided each with an inner boss, e', (shown in Fig. 2.) which Whenconnected substantially tlls the aperture of frame E, loosely fittingtherein. The axle d is rigidly secured to the circular joint ends offrame E at a point above their center and above the center of theirembossed parts ef, thus forming an eccentric. The coiled spring isattached, its outer end to the reel, and its inner end to the axle d',so that the revolutions of the reel in the descent, Wind up the spring,and upon being relieved ofthe Weightof the descending body theresistance of the compressed spring reverses the reel, winds up thecable, and carries the whole back to its place of departure.

- To permit such return, it is necessary to disenratchet-teeth; but asoften as weight is ap plied and the lower end of frame E is borne downperpendicular withthe upper frame the pawl C is brought back intoconnection With the ratchet-teeth c a.

To guard against the possible accident of a too rapiti descent in case,for any reason, the patvl U should fail to come in contact with theteeth a a upon the application of the Weight tothe lower frame, Iprovide a safety-dog, F, secured to the upper frame at such a point thatit comes in contact with the inner teeth, a a', ofthe reel whenever thepawl O is out of contact with the outer teeth, and prevents any IOO oneof' its advantages consists in the fact that the device itself iscarried down with the person descending, thus causing no downwardmovement; of the rope or cable after it is paid outlfronu the reel, asis the case with other devices of like object, rendering the rope liableto 'be severed in the descent by sawing across sharp edges of masonry oriron with which it may come in contact. Its action being automatic bothin descending and ascending, no experience is required to operate it. Y

Having thus described niy invention, I claiml. A tire-escape consistingiu a frame composed of two sectionsan upper and lower one-connectedtogether by an eccex'itric-joiut, a coiled spring secured to theaXlejoined to the eccentric, a ratchet, and pawl, the whole soconstructed and arranged that the coiled spring zoAwill automaticallycanse the device to be returned alter cach descent, substantially asspecified.

2. 1n a fire-escape, the combination, with a frame composed ot an upperand lower section connected by an eccentric-joint, and the axle d', of areel provided with ratchet-teeth, the pawl and pendulum, andspring,substantially as specied.

3. In a lire-escape having a cable, the combination ofthe framccom posedof/an upper and lower section connected by an eccentric-joint, the axlesd and d, with the reel provided with ratchet-teeth, the pawl andpendulum, and coiled spring, as specified.

4. A lire-escape consisting; of the frame E E', connected with the axled by the eccentricjoint, as described, and axle d, in combination withthe reel A, provided with inner and outer ratchet-teeth, the pawl andpendulum, coiled spring' D, safety-dog F, and cable B, as and for thepurpose set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I hereto affix mysignature in presence of two Witnesses.

ALEXANDER T. BROW'N.

Witnesses B. A. BENEDICT, A. H. DAY.

